"Since its origins in 1890 as one of the three main divisions of the University of Chicago, the Press has embraced as its mission the obligation to disseminate scholarship of the highest standard and to publish serious works that promote education, foster public understanding, and enrich cultural life.....The Books Division of the University of Chicago Press has been publishing books for scholars, students, and general readers since 1892. The Books Division has published more than eleven thousand books since the Press was founded."

Blocks away from the private University of Chicago - which holds a 7.5 billion dollar endowment - state schools like Chicago State are facing a budget crisis. Chicago State students have taken to protesting around the city. Eastern Illinois University may be closed entirely. Western Illinois University - whose library hasn't been able to purchase new books in years - is cutting faculty and the governor is considering shuttering the religious studies program there. The University of Chicago is more "profitable" than ever....

"Katie Hickam, a school counselor at Murphysboro High School [in Illinois], said several students have stopped by the office in a panic that SIU, Eastern Illinois University or another state school will close next year. 'We try to reassure them that they’re still going to be open,' she said. 'But I think it’s difficult for us to reassure these students when we really don’t have any idea of what’s going to happen.'"